Openly Gay Priest Fired from Philly College

Fox 29 reports that Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia fired one of its professors for being gay. Father James St. George, a priest who belongs to a sect of the Old Catholic Church of The Americas that broke away from the Vatican as early as 1870, says in his church priests are not only allowed to marry, but they are not punished for being homosexual. And he’s been in an openly gay relationship for the last 15 years.

The college, however, says that it was unaware that St. George was gay when he was hired, even though a Google search on the priest tells a different story. The news is reporting that the firing may be a result of an incendiary letter penned to the Archdiocese by a local lawyer.

Fox 29 reports that attorney James Pepper emailed Cardinal Justin Rigali, calling the professor a “heretic.”

“A school that is supposed to teach religious understanding is not even being tolerant,” the priest told Fox 29, saying that the college will not take his calls to discuss the matter, nor have they spoken with him in person. The priest currently serves as a trauma chaplain. He also runs a small parish in Blue Bell.

The college’s president Sister Carol Jean Vale responded to an inquiry by Fox 29, writing, “It was with great disappointment when we learned through St. George’s public statements of his involvement in a gay relationship with another man for the past 15 years.”

Here’s a video interview with the fired father:

Catholic College Fires Openly Gay Priest: MyFoxPHILLY.com